I'm currently on a train from Lisbon to Faro so had a bit of time to think about last night and the subsequent frustration of being locked inside the stadium for 40 minutes, which when compared to Naples and Madrid (or even our previous visit to Lisbon) was relatively short.
However, there was some kind of medical emergency which resulted in a clearly distressed lady being allowed to leave
The bloke behind me was screaming about civil liberties, but there was absolutely nothing we could do about it.
Another thread is discussing the defeat at Ayresome Park in 84-85, and having attended virtually every game of that infamous season I'm well aware of the reasons why English football supporters gained such a notorious reputation.
However that was 40 years ago and nowadays your typical travelling club supporter just wants to see the game.
Yes, our idea of a "good time" might still involve smashed bottles and a few unsavoury songs in the local Irish bar, but this normally occurs on the night before the game and is usually contained by the local police.
I'm sure its the same for the other English clubs, but why are the fans of Real Madrid or Sporting Lisbon treated so much better when they come to Manchester?
Thankfully we still haven't played at Galatasaray, but even more irritating is the sense that the worst behaviour in recent seasons at the Etihad has nearly always surfaced in the away end at CL games, with Red Star Belgrade Dynamo Zagreb and Sparta Prague all bringing a fair proportion of balloons.
The English are always welcomed with open arms by the foreign tourist industries essentially because they recognise our numbers and spending power. However, this doesn't extend to their football policing.
Who actually makes these decisions and why were we treated so much better in Bratislava than Lisbon?
PS
I hope the lady is okay.
